At first, the article “How Google Dominates Us” seemed like little more than a commercial for Google. I found myself getting roped in by how Google started, developed and grew. I didn’t realize how “search engines” worked before the invention of Google, nor did I know exactly how Google decides what the top results of searches are. I enjoyed reading facts and statistics about the popularity of Google Translate and the number of keystrokes Google Instant has saved users from having to type.
However, I knew going into the article that Google takes the information of its users to sell to advertisers – so I knew what to expect next. The article put it best when it stated, “we are not Google’s customers: we are its product.” In high school, many clubs I was in utilized Google Docs to share information and collaborate with other members. Unfortunately, this helpful operation was shut down due to privacy issues. The school didn’t want students using Google sites without the permission of parents, due to the fact that Google blatantly takes information.
The article “How Google Dominates Us” says that while Google is indeed monitoring our behavior and making a ton of money off the fact, there is a tradeoff. When Google knows who we are, we get better search results and see more appropriate advertising. Sure, our privacy is less… private, but it makes me wonder: if Google did suddenly decide to suspend the way the company is currently run and stops using the information of users, would the same users complain due to the decline in accurate results?